Rand vs. Evolutionary Psychology - Norms promoting tolerance and honesty

Bryan Caplan at EconLog wrote something worth reading.

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Rand vs. Evolutionary Psychology: Part 2, Bryan Caplan | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty: "If Rand really wanted to build an individualist sub-culture, she would have done so in an evolutionarily informed way. If people naturally care about the opinions of others, jumping on people is a good way to get dishonest conformity, but a bad way to get an honest exchange of ideas. Instead, an individualist sub-culture must be built upon tolerance and honesty. I'd suggest three key norms:

1. Don't think less of people who sincerely disagree.

2. Do think less of people who insincerely agree.

3. Do think less of people who think less of people who sincerely disagree.

I don't claim that these norms are easy. It's tough for humans to follow them perfectly. But they're do-able - and given human nature, they're self-reinforcing. In fact, these guidelines are pillars of the legendary GMU lunch. Our tradition is now in its thirteenth year, and I'm proud to say that unlike the Objectivists, we've never purged a member."

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People moan about overcoming bias - but the unstated is that they bemoan the bias in other people. Disciplines that actually allow one to shed personal bias are very uninteresting to most people. The disciplines that actually allow an individual to shed his own biases are practically the only interesting things in the world.

Python News: PSF adopts Diversity Statement

What do I think about diversity statements? The Python Software Foundation has published and endorsed one:

The Python Software Foundation and the global Python community welcome and encourage participation by everyone. Our community is based on mutual respect, tolerance, and encouragement, and we are working to help each other live up to these principles. We want our community to be more diverse: whoever you are, and whatever your background, we welcome you.

Also see: For additional resources on efforts to promote diversity within the Python community, please see the main diversity page.

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Diversity/multiculturalism is a means to an end, not an end in itself.

I am for diversity/multiculturalism, now, in western culture, because there are too few natural experiments in effective living. More natural experiments by different cultural, national, religious, social-sexual groups lead to better outcomes.

Society would give more people happiness, fulfilment, health, reproductive opportunities in the absence of pain and anxiety if more people copied the best of other cultural, national, religious, social-sexual groups.

I take exception to the use of the word "tolerance". To tolerate one thing, you must be intolerant of forces in opposition to that thing. "Tolerance", taken by itself, is meaningless, unless the form of the corresponding intolerance is unspecified.

As a human, I have a built in bias against other cultural, nationalreligious, social-sexual groups. I strive to rise above these biases, and act accordingly. I am intolerant of those who would act against other cultural, religious, social-sexual groups, for their own benefit or comfort. I also take exception to the use of the word "diverse". There are some forms of diversity I value, and other I do not. I would not appreciate diversity that welcomes motivated stupidity, motivated sloth, motivated controversy, and motivated egoistic criticism and . I feel strongly that those who practice motivated stupidity, motivated sloth, motivated controversy, and motivated egoistic criticism should feel unwelcome. ("motivated is important here, I don't mean those who do so out of understandable ignorance, or who are incapable of constructive communication because of situational stress.)

The diversity I value are, again, cultural, national, religious, and social-sexual, for the reasons stated above. Not that anyone should care, I just wanted the exercise of making my thoughts more precise.

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I have a terrible temper, and act like a lout, many times. I hate communities that rate politeness over technical correctness, but I cannot defend my loutish stupidity. I don't mind getting called out - I deserve it.

Python News: PSF adopts Diversity Statement: "

On October 12, 2009, the board of the Python Software Foundation voted to adopt a Diversity Statement.

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